Donuts in an Empty Field is a contemporary, realistic fiction, and Young Adult novel about two best friends, the local food challenge, and letting go of anger.

This excerpt is from chapter one. After last week when Vanessa first opens the room to her late father’s office, she is tasked with cleaning everything out and boxing everything up with her mom. Nichole, her best friend, comes over to help. When Mom leaves to get the girls a snack, Nichole trips over a stack of books and Vanessa accidentally rips a photo off the wall in her attempts to save Nichole from falling on her butt.

Nichole sucks in a breath as I turn to face the ruined picture. Something flutters behind the missing corner and I lift the stiff paper to peer behind it.Something is there. Nichole and I both jump at the sound of a crash from the front of the house.“Mom!” I yell. I’m wound up from being in Dad’s office, from remembering our last day together, to the finality of packing up his stuff that I go into panic mode and run toward the door.

What’s behind the photo? It’s a single piece of paper. Find out next week what it says.

Local young adult writer, Rachel Barnard, will release the first novel in her young adult For the Love of Donuts series titled Donuts in an Empty Field with Life’s a Book Publishing, June 3rd, 2016 (AKA National Donut Day). Order your copy HERE.

Letting go of anger is life’s greatest challenge.

Vanessa hasn’t been the same since her father’s death. A hero until the end, he died saving a restaurant owner’s son from a burning building. Nessa blames the boy, but her best friend Nichole thinks it’s time to let go of the past. In a last ditch effort to break Nessa’s obsession, Nichole hopes signing up for the local food challenge will bust her out of her shell. A single choice defines the road ahead for Nessa. Doing the right thing isn’t easy, but living with the consequences of doing nothing might be worse.

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